Road home is smooth sailing for SBCC football team after blowout victory

The perils of taking a team on the road was a hot topic at Monday’s Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table media luncheon.

The Santa Barbara City College football team dealt with the annoying gridlock traffic on the 405 Freeway as it headed to Los Angeles Southwest College southwest of Inglewood on Saturday.

“We were just keeping our fingers crossed that we didn’t hit the 405 parking lot, but we did,” coach Craig Moropoulos said. “We got to the stadium on time, played a really good game and won 51-12 and got out of there.”

Carpinteria wasn’t so fortunate on its first road trip to Ojai.

Football coach Rick Candaele learned the importance of getting an early start when going on the road.

“Our bus was delayed a bit,” he said of the trip to Nordhoff. “By the time we got to the field, we were down 21-0.”

The Warriors lost 56-7.

“We go on the road again (to Viewpoint in Calabasas), so we’re going to leave earlier and, hopefully, show up right at the start of that game,” Candaele joked.

Good fortune was with SBCC on the Vaqueros’ trip home after their second-straight win.

“Luckily, USC was in double overtime, so just as they were kicking the field goal (to beat Texas at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum), we got past the 10 (freeway) and got home in about and hour and a half,”​ Moropoulos said. “It was a good day.”

It was a great day for SBCC running back Manny Nwosu. He bolted through and around defenders for 199 yards and a 40-yard touchdown.

“Manny Nwosu is playing out of his mind right now,” Moropoulos said of the former Dos Pueblos High star.

Moropoulos introduced two other key performers in the win: Jeremiah Wright and Chayvis Curry. Wright opened the game with an 88-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and “played a money game at wide receiver,” he said.

Curry, a defensive end, had eight tackles, five for a loss, 3.5 sacks and a fumble recovery.

“In defense-speak, that’s pretty dominating,” Moropoulos said.

Santa Barbara High

The Dons hit the road for the first time this season, playing at Royal in Simi Valley on Friday night.

“We’re excited to get out of town,” Santa Barbara High coach J.T. Stone said. “Royal is identical to us; they run the spread offense. We’ve played them the last three years and it’s been close every year.”

Stone paid tribute to a pair of seniors: lineman Oscar Nevarez and receiver/defensive back Dallas Redick.

“Both these guys have been with me for four years,” he said.

As for the Dons’ 56-0 loss to Lompoc, Stone said: “I’m happy with our team’s effort this past weekend. We won’t see a team like that anywhere anytime soon.”

Dos Pueblos High

The Chargers picked off four passes in their 29-26 win over Camarillo, giving them 23 turnovers through four games, coach Nate Mendoza reported.

Michael Elbert had one of the picks in addition to double-digit tackles and a 47-yard touchdown reception on offense.

“He was just a huge performer for us,” Mendoza said.

He called defensive tackle Matthew Molina “an unsung hero. He does the dirty work on the line. Justin Padilla’s two interceptions for touchdowns (this season) were both off his tipped balls.”

Padilla returned his second TD against Camarillo.

Mendoza added that Molina is matched up every week against the opposing team’s best tackle.

Dos Pueblos (3-1) plays at San Luis Obispo on Friday.

San Marcos High

The Royals lost another starting quarterback as sophomore Ben Partee suffered a broke bone in his hand on San Marcos’ second series against Hueneme.

Despite the setback, coach Jason Fowle liked how his team battled and almost pulled off a comeback win.

“It was one of those games you’d like to see your guys rise up and get in done in the heat of the battle,” he said. “Our guys battled hard. We played great defense all night long; credit to our staff.”

Fowle noted that after bouncing around at different positions, Steven Corona has found a home on the defensive line.

“He really shined there against Hueneme,” he said. “He had seven total tackles, one for a loss and a sack.”

Bishop Diego High

Bishop Diego assistant coach Steve Robles said head coach Tom Crawford was extremely happy with the team’s performance in its 24-23 win at St. Joseph in Santa Maria.

“He’s happy with the composure our kids showed all game long and in the last three minutes,” he said.

Chris Jablonka and Jack Luckurst played key roles in the win. Jablonka, the center, a defensive end and outside linebacker, made a huge sack on St. Joseph’s last drive to preserve the victory.

Luckhurst was clutch as a kicker and punter. He had two punts over 50 yards, one booted from his own end zone and another that went out of bounds at the 1. He kicked a 32-yard field goal at the end of the first half and converted the game-winning PAT with 42 seconds left.

Robles also acknowledged the Bishop JV team, which has 36 players and is off to a 3-1 start.

The Cardinals, 4-0 and ranked No. 1 in Division 6 of the CIF-Southern Section, play at San Diego Section power Santa Fe Christian in Solana Beach on Saturday.

Laguna Blanca School

Laguna Blanca coach Shane Lopes expressed his appreciation of four-year players Javier Abrego and Miles McGovern. He said it was good to see Abrego shine in Friday night’s win over Desert at Edwards Air Force Base. He scored three touchdowns.

McGovern led the team in tackles with 11, forced two fumbles and had two sacks. He also stayed to help clean out the team bus after returning to Hope Ranch at 1:30 a.m. the next day.

Lopes said it was privilege to play at the Air Force base, especially on 9/11.

The Owls (2-0) are on the road again at East Valley in North Hollywood on Friday night.

Carpinteria High

Candaele praised the play of senior center David Torres and wide receiver Terrell Richardson.

“They’re both three-year starters and both are going to lead our team to improve,” he said.

VOLLEYBALL

Westmont

Coach Patti Cook’s squad is cooking with a 16-1 record, 3-0 in the Golden State Athletic Conference.

“We have a good team, we have a really good team,” she said of her Warriors. “We have a ton of depth and a lot of lineup options.

“That really rang true with Taylor Beckman missing 10 matches and we won all those matches. Taylor was back this weekend and played well.”

Libby Dahlberg had a great weekend of matches, recording 20 kills in 26 attempts with no errors in wins over San Diego Christian and Arizona Christian.

“That’s pretty amazing,” Cook said.

UCSB

Assistant coach Matt Jones said the Gauchos (1-11) are “having a really rough year. We’ve had a lot of injuries, but we got our first win at a tournament in Pittsburgh. We had a faculty rep there who said it was really awesome to see four freshmen on the floor. I said it was, but that wasn’t the plan six months ago.”

The Gauchos open Big West Conference play at home this weekend against UC Riverside (Friday) and Cal State Fullerton (Saturday).

Dos Pueblos

Assistant coach and former Dos Pueblos player Sarah McKinny said libero Alison Minnich and setter Mikayla Butzke “play an integral part in the success of the team. They both are all-around athletes who have a great and positive attitude.”

The Chargers are coming off a 4-4 record at the Camarillo Tournament. They’re 9-7 and 0-1 in league going into Tuesday’s crosstown battle at San Marcos.

San Marcos

Co-coach Tina Brown said two-sport athlete Leila Parker has the highest vertical leap on the team and is the team’s “secret weapon off the bench. She’s a goofy foot, people can’t read where she’s going to hit.”

The Royals went 13-1 at the Camarillo Tournament, losing only to Laguna Blanca in the playoffs.

San Marcos (11-7) opens Channel League play at home Tuesday against Dos Pueblos.

Santa Barbara

Coach Chad Arneson said he’s moved junior lefty Chloe Mauceri from opposite to the outside hitter to improve production.

Junior setter Ellie Chenoweth has done a good job running the offense, he noted.

The Dons (3-6) face a tough challenge on Tuesday, traveling to Harvard Westlake, the No. 8 team in Division 1.

“I got this schedule from (former coach) John Gannon and I’m riding with it,” said Arneson. “It’s all about building confidence.”

The Dons will host Oaks Christian on Thursday.

Bishop Diego

Coach John Sener said Marynicole Ramirez and Lauren Holsted are the heart and soul of the Cardinals.

Holsted, an outside hitter, is a leader who also does a good job coaching her teammates on the floor, he said.

Ramirez has blossomed as a libero in just three years of playing.

“Marynicole is one of the most incredible liberos I’ve had the pleasure to coach,” said Sener.

Bishop (2-1, 2-0) plays Oak Park and rival Carpinteria this week.

Laguna Blanca

After playing 20 games from Thursday to Saturday, coach Jason Donnelly gave his Owls the day off Monday.

“I must be maturing,” cracked Donnelly. “I wouldn’t have done that a few years ago.”

He said Caylin Zimmerman (the Athlete of the Week) had 154 swings and hit .315 in the 20 games.

“That’s too many swings for my liking, even though our system is designed to set Caylin a lot of balls,” Donnelly explained. “She stepped up and when she gets going she’s pretty much unstoppable at the high school level because she’s got a lot of different shots.”

Kendall White shines as a back-row player for the Owls.

“All you coaches would love her because she loves to play and she does her job. She understands her role like no other,” said Donnelly.

Carpinteria

Athletic director Pat Cooney reported that the Warriors won the Silver Division at the Camarillo Tournament. Libero Crystal Sanchez and middle blocker Shaya Alexander led the way.

The Warriors have home matches against Santa Clara and Bishop Diego before hosting their Carpinteria Fall Classic on Saturday.

CROSS COUNTRY

San Marcos: “Jason Peterson is having an amazing year,” coach Lawrence Stehmeier said of his senior standout. “He’s doing what I’d like to see all our seniors do and that’s come out and go after it every race.”

Peterson (the Athlete of the Week) won the Channel League Meet No. 1 and took second at the Ojai Invitational.

Stehmeier also introduced girls team senior captain Kendra Dayton, who has overcome injuries and is running at No. 3 or 4, and Camille Lubach.

Junior Dominic Pugliano and sophomore Kyle Rheinschild have stepped up for the boys team.

“It’s great to see the depth of the team,” Stehmeier said. “They support each other other and got each other’s back out there. It looks like its going to be a great year.”

Laguna Blanca

Coach David Silverander said the Owls are in a good place this year because there are six runners on both the boys and girls teams.

Freshman Daisy Finefrock has taken to running like a natural, he said. And sophomore Ian Brown is a talented runner with a great attitude.

Dos Pueblos

Micks Purnell was analyzing the season and figured the Chargers would be battling for the third and final CIF spot in the Channel League.

The girls team started well, beating Buena for third in the first league meet. The boys struggled, but Purnell said they should be better after going through their training plan.

The plan set up for offseason training is paying off for Nathaniel Getachew. Purnell said the junior is running two minutes faster than last year

“He’s grown and, with the discipline of training, he’s really come along in his ability and what his prospects will be in the future,” said Purnell.

For the DP girls, Kailey Reardon is a natural team leader, Purnell said. In addition to leading the cross country team, she is a leader for the Riviera Robotics Team, which has competed at the world robotics championships.